I am a neighborhood watch block captain and one of the organizers of North Park's protest of smoke shops selling illegal drug paraphernalia ["The Front Lines," Nov. 28]. Within a one-block radius of a cluster of three smoke shops in North Park, our neighborhood watch group has witnessed with their own eyes drug use, drug deals and drug holdups. On many nights in this area, one can find drug users getting high, often hiding behind dumpsters, and drug dealers walking around with drug laden knapsacks. That's why we have been protesting these shops. We appreciate the work of the Drug Abatement Response Team and the city attorney to enforce the law and to protect our children from this criminal element.

Jeff Stebbins, North Park Neighborhood Watch

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